The Feed

I am excited to say that we are moving forward with our vision to create community development opportunities through social entrepreneurialism.

After years of working with organizations and youth in the notoriously underserved community of Cabrini Green in Chicago, one need continued to ring alarmingly clear – Jobs.  Without employment all of the mentoring and tutoring invested in at-risk youth seemed no match for the cycles of the street.

New strategies were desperately needed as plenty of well intentioned ideas fell short of creating sustainable employment. An entrepreneurial team of local leaders (Brian Kammerzelt, Rupert Williams, Kevin Taylor) set out to identify potential business models that would create next steps and collaborative community development for the youth (and families) being built into through organizations like/specifically GRIP Outreach for Youth.

The most promising idea so far came from an advertising venture from AArrow Advertising – creators of an advertising strategy known as “sign spinning.”  The potential that the AArrow Advertising model had to align with the team’s social enterprise goals was obvious and exciting.  From a sports team structure, to the youthful energy of the company, to opportunities for upward mobility, the match was clear and the call was made.

After a year of due diligence from a growing team (notably Jeff Houston and Amber Sturrus) the AArrow Advertising franchise in Chicago has launched and the enthusiasm from AArrow management, local leadership, and local youth have been incredibly high. This week we finally began training local youth to be sign spinners.

With charisma, independence, athleticism, and a competitive spirit, our local youth have proven to be ideal job candidates and our connections with GRIP help provide holistic coaching and mentoring.  The “spinners” are supported by a team that truly cares about their development and has ensured training/resources far beyond the basic job – life skills, communication skills, financial skills, upward mobility, public exposure, resume building…and the list goes on.

Additionally, a significant portion of all profits are being donated back to youth programs and other community development initiatives.  The business is run as a social enterprise with immediate goals to transfer wealth and ownership to this under-resourced community as a part of creating lasting holistic change in Chicago.

See for yourself. Visit a practice session and join the fun, comradery, drive, and discipline of a team offering the most exciting advertising opportunity in Chicago.

Your help is still needed – roles of all types need support – especially if you are in advertising or have any advertising contacts in Chicago.  Get involved!  Please contact Rupert Williams (rupertwilliams@aarrowads.com) for more information.